Adrian Newey heads to Aston Martin.
The Formula One team announced on Tuesday that the veteran car designer will join the team on March 1, 2025. Newey’s arrival comes after spending the majority of the 2024 season on leave following announcing his departure from Red Bull Racing.
Newey is the most influential car designer in modern F1 history. He was Red Bull’s technical director and oversaw the development of the team’s car that won 19 of last season’s 22 races, when Max Verstappen had the most dominant season in F1 history. Aston Martin currently fields the cars of Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll.
“I have been hugely inspired and impressed by the passion and commitment that (team owner Lawrence Stroll) brings to everything he does,” Newey said in a statement. “Lawrence is determined to build a world-class team. He is the only majority owner of the team actively involved in the sport. His commitment is demonstrated by the development of the new AMR Technology Campus and wind tunnel at Silverstone, which are not only state-of-the-art, but designed to create a great environment to work in.”
That campus was key in securing Newey’s services when the team took him on a tour of the facility earlier this summer.
Newey’s start date means he should be able to play a role in the team’s car design for 2026. F1 is currently reviewing car regulations for the 2026 season and Red Bull was an early adopter when car rules were changed after the 2021 season.
Mercedes had been the dominant team throughout 2021, but new car rules gave Red Bull a chance to return to the top of F1. The team has won the last two constructors’ titles, while Verstappen has won three consecutive drivers’ titles.
However, teams have caught up with Red Bull this season, and it remains unclear to what extent that recovery is due to Newey’s departure.
One of the teams that has been unable to catch Red Bull is Aston Martin, which finds itself in a distant fifth place in the constructors’ standings, behind Red Bull, McLaren, Ferrari and Mercedes.
The team looked very combative at the start of the 2023 season, with Alonso taking six podiums in the first eight races. Since then, he has only finished on the podium twice.